Montco native to head WDIY

Dennise Kowalczyk impressed board with work at Oregon station.

A Montgomery County native with extensive experience in community public radio took over Thursday as executive director of the Lehigh Valley's community public radio station, WDIY.

Dennise Kowalczyk was chosen from more than 50 applicants because of her "broad spectrum" of experience at two Portland, Ore., public radio stations, according to Bill Dautremont-Smith, board president of Lehigh Valley Community Broadcasters Association, parent organization of WDIY.

Originally from the Upper Perkiomen Valley, Kowalczyk said she is excited to be returning to the area and plans to help WDIY "become bigger and better."

Listener-supported WDIY (88.1 FM) is the only National Public Radio affiliate based in the Lehigh Valley. The 11-year-old station airs popular NPR staples such as "Morning Edition" and "All Things Considered."

As a community radio operation, WDIY features community volunteers as on-air hosts and emphasizes homegrown music and talk programming, such as "Live from Godfrey Daniels" and the public affairs call-in show "Valley Venue." Its call letters stand for Do It Yourself.

The station, which has its studios in south Bethlehem, has six staff members and reported 1,350 members last September.

It has struggled to meet its budget in recent years and announced $60,000 in budget cuts last year, including making its news director part time.

In May, WDIY station manager Burr Beard left to become program director for Lehigh-Carbon Community College's radio station.

Kowalczyk takes the helm from interim Executive Director Roland Kushner, who left two weeks ago for a teaching position at Moravian College in Bethlehem.

Dautremont-Smith said the new executive director position combines the responsibilities of the station manager and development director, saving the station money by eliminating a position.

In April, Lyndsey Brown, who was hired in July 2005 as development director, left for an academic position.

"We felt there needed to be one figurehead for the station who would be the primary external face," Dautremont-Smith said.

Former station manager Beard had supported failed plans for a merger between WDIY and PBS-39, WLVT-TV, the Valley's public television station.

But Beard said he was not asked to resign and was not interested in the executive director position.

Supporters argued the merger, first proposed in 2004, would strengthen WDIY, allowing it to solidify its finances and giving it the resources to modernize its equipment. The radio station was expected to move to PBS-39's Bethlehem campus as part of the deal.

Detractors predicted the merger would compromise WDIY's independence and dilute its grass-roots identity.

The merger talks ended when a group of board members and station founders filed a lawsuit to block the move, challenging the board's authority to make such an agreement. Faced with the prospect of prolonged litigation, pro-merger directors ultimately resigned their positions, ending the merger talks.

Dautremont-Smith said the board had been impressed by Kowalczyk's work at Portland's KBOO, which he characterized as one of the oldest and largest community radio stations in the country.

"KBOO has a track record of having grown," Dautremont-Smith said. "It has a large membership and is one of the longest-established community radio stations."

Kowalczyk started at KBOO in 1995 as a volunteer and worked her way up to station manager. She worked as news and public affairs director, producing a daily 60-minute news program.

She also served as temporary manager at KBPS, Portland's all-classical public station.

Dautremont-Smith said the board hopes Kowalczyk will increase the visibility of the station in the community, leading to more listeners and members.

Kowalczyk said she has no concrete plans for new initiatives.

"This is an exciting time for the station," she said. "We are looking at a bright future. The staff and volunteers are extremely dedicated.

"WDIY is a wonderful mixture of public and community radio that presents content that listeners can't get anywhere else."

Kowalczyk said while she is still assessing WDIY's needs, she plans to get out into the community to raise awareness of the station and strengthen partnerships with businesses and organizations.

She said her husband, Xander Patterson, her daughter, Lila Rose, and her cat will join her in Bethlehem by October.

kathy.lauer@mcall.com

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1981: Lehigh Valley Community Broadcasters Association formed by local radio enthusiasts.